Food

Fifty-two percent of low-wage fast-food workers rely on public assistance programs like food stamps and Medicaid just to make ends meet, a fresh analysis finds. Many are adults supporting families. But some conservative economists say raising the minimum wage to $15 — as protesters are demanding — wouldn't help matters.

The street artist's latest piece is called "Sirens of the Lambs," and it features a bunch of cuddly puppet animals peeking out of a slaughterhouse truck, squealing with fear. The truck is set to tour around New York City for the next week and a half.

There have been a lot of headlines during the government shutdown suggesting that that our food supplies may be at risk as agencies like the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control have furloughed workers. But food suppliers and processors increasingly rely on a large network of private companies to make sure food is safe.

The unharvested food in the White House kitchen garden serves as a high-profile reminder of the shutdown's effects on food producers. And across the country, farmers are wondering when they'll receive the permits and government support they count on to stay afloat.

Michigan is expected to bring in a record-setting apple crop this year. So how do you sort and package 2,000 Galas in a minute? Farmers have turned to the Rolls Royce of fruit processing: a robot that uses computer vision to weed out the bad apples.

Southern New Mexico is America's iconic home of chili harvesting and production. But production is a fraction of what's produced in India and China — countries with large pools of labor. Still, in the fall, New Mexico farmers need hundreds of workers to handpick their crops. Even paying $14 an hour, they can't find enough help.

The taste of the drink can change with the imbiber's surroundings, according to a study from Oxford University. Researchers led people through three rooms with very different sights, sounds and smells — each brought out a new flavor in the whisky.

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